Just a Bad Dream
by KatMellark21
Summary: Katniss has been hurt in an accident a couple of weeks ago, and was seriously injured. In this piece she is relying on Peeta to help her get ready for bed and to put the kids to sleep. When she finally can sleep, dreams mixed with things from the past and from the future haunt her. (Note: Everlark children names are Primrose(Nicknamed Rose) and Aiden)


I rock gently from side to side in my seat a bit as Peeta pushes my wheelchair over the threshold of the door and into our bedroom. The new baby is nodding off in my arms, having been rocked almost to sleep by the short, smooth ride. And his sister is curled up on my lap, already dreaming. Peeta pushes us over to the crib and bends over to take our son from my arm, holding him out for me to give him a kiss on his soft blonde head, then places him in his crib. Our little girl shifts a bit on my lap, her small hand gripping loosely to the hem of my shirt. I grin, give her a kiss and hand her to Peeta. I smile as he fawns over her for a moment before kissing her and then laying her in her small bed beside the crib.

We remain there, watching the two of them until they fall asleep a few short moments later. I feel Peeta rest his hand on my shoulder, and reach up to hold it. "I know I've already said it, but you did a good job with them." He says, a glad smirk in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm a pretty good baker after all," I joke. He looks at me, an eyebrow raised and a curious smirk. "You know…'Buns in the oven'?" I explain.

"Oh, right." He says, his smirk widening to an amused grin at my attempted humor.

I sigh contentedly and look at them again, "Although I guess he was a little underdone," I began, a slight melancholy creeping its way into my voice as I looked down at our tiny son. Due to some complications, he was born three weeks premature.

"Hey," Peeta says, his hand gently giving my shoulder a squeeze. "They are perfect. And you are perfect." He leans down and kisses me on the cheek.

"I'm hardly perfect." I say, a grin coming back to my lips at his sweet comment.

"Perfect enough for me." He smiles and kisses me again, this time a gentle peck on the lips. "You ready for bed too?" I nod in response, knowing that what he is really asking is if I'm ready for him to help me get ready for bed, without making me have to ask for his help. Getting myself ready for bed has become an excruciating task after getting out of the hospital. The injuries I've sustained from the accident make some of the most mundane tasks difficult and painful. Anything that requires me to lift my elbows above chin-level, or where I need to lean over or turn more than ninety degrees at the waist, or even just standing up…all of it sends spasms of pain through me. At first I'd tried to just work through the pain, but there were enough times that I yelped out in pain that I finally submitted to having Peeta help me.

He rolls my chair backwards and pushes me over to the side of the bed. Carefully he places one arm around my back and slides the other under my knees, lifting me out of the chair and setting me down on the bed as gently as possible.

He begins to help me shrug off my t-shirt as painlessly as he can, but my ribs ache and I grimace as I force my arms to raise above my head so the shirt can come off. Thankfully I am already wearing a camisole under the t-shirt, so I don't have to go through the effort of putting on a sleeping shirt.

He brings me a glass of water and some pain pills. I take a few sips and swallow the pills down gratefully, eagerly awaiting the relief they will bring me. Setting the cup on the nightstand, I look over to where our children are sleeping and smile at them. They never cease to amaze me. Aiden is so small, but so strong already. And Rose is just two years old but she's so talkative and smart. I'm so proud of them and every time I see them, I overflow with happiness and I am able to forget everything else and just be happy to have them. Looking at them and taking care of them all day is what really gets me through the day. It lets me forget about myself and just think about them and keeping them happy and healthy.

I let Peeta take care of me now. I'm exhausted from the long day and my body is worn out from the physically draining process that is healing. I'm practically falling asleep sitting on the edge of the bed. Peeta pulls the covers back for me and helps me lay down. I don't like feeling so dependent on Peeta to do such simple things for me; but at the same time, I do like it. He dotes on me like I'm a little child, and I've never had that before. It's nice. He likes doing it too. It gives him another way to show me that he care about me.

He covers me with the sheets and asks me if I need anything. "No, I'm fine." I tell him. He leans down to kiss my forehead then walks into the bathroom. He comes back in plaid flannel pajama pants and a plain white undershirt. "You sure you don't need anything?" He asks.

"No, really. I'm fine. I just need some sleep."

"Okay then," he says, lowering himself gently onto the bed. "Good night Sweetheart." He props himself up on his elbow and kisses me, then lays back down on his pillows and closes his eyes. I notice that, as usual since I got hurt, he's careful to stay all the way over on his side of the bed.

"Peeta…" I whisper quietly. Waiting until he looks at me again. His eyes catch mine, and I want to tell him that… My thought trails off and I sigh inwardly at myself. I love him so much, but I can't bring myself to vocalize that I want him to hold me. But he knows me better than I realize.

"Katniss…I don't want to hurt you. I know your ribs are still sore…"

"Please?" I ask him pleadingly, my voice catching in my throat.

He sighs gently and moves closer to me, gently putting his arm around me. "I'm not hurting you like this?" he asks, concern creasing his brow. In all honesty, it does hurt a bit because of the angle I'm laying at over his arm. He's trying to be gentle, but the pressure on my ribs is threatening to make me cry out. I adjusted a little, scooting closer to him, resting my head on his shoulder and an arm on his chest. As soon as I get comfortable enough I sigh happily.

It's so nice to be in his arms again. To be close to him, and feel his warmth surrounding me, in a protective but gentle embrace. Happiness is a funny thing. It has this way of banishing all the pain to the farthest depths of my consciousness. I can't feel the sensitive bruises or the aching pain, the only thing my senses can pick up on are my feelings for Peeta. I make myself comfortable and close my eyes, falling asleep to the sound of gentle breathing of the three people I love the most.

_We're back in the Victor's Village. The four of us, living happily together in a lush and thriving District 12. All our old friends are back. They come to visit us and play with the twins. Prim, my mother, Gale, Madge, Delly, Haymitch, Cinna, even Effie. One day Finnik and Annie even bring Finny over to play with Rose and Aiden. The three kids toddle around on the ground and play together. Everything is perfect._

_ On the Rose's sixth birthday we have a huge party. She and her brother are having a great time playing with Finny. I laugh as they start chasing each other around the house playing hide and seek. Everyone is sitting around laughing, and just enjoying the company of our loved ones. Everything is perfect._

_ But all perfect things come to an end. And I can feel a looming darkness creeping closer._

_ Aiden is turning twelve today. Peeta's downstairs making a big pancake breakfast to celebrate. Toby's helping him, dumping chocolate chips into the bowl of batter. Flour speckled all over his face and apron, he looks just like Peeta except for his grey eyes and the slightly more olive skin he gets from me. Rose and I are upstairs sitting on the edge of her bed. My fingers move back and forth as I wind together three thick locks of her hair into a braid. After I finish tying it off, she turns around and gives me a hug. I brush her brunette bangs out of her face and kiss her forehead. She smiles and I watch as she bounds down the stairs to get some pancakes. Everything is perfect, but the looming unease in the pit of my stomach rises._

_ Suddenly Peeta and I are standing in the middle of town. There is a huge crowd of people. I move closer to Peeta, taking his hand in mine and ask him where Rose and Aiden are. He shakes his head and scans the crowd. My heart rises into my throat, as I realize what day it is. My eyes shoot up to see a large stage that has been set up in front of the justice building and watch as a woman walks up to a microphone. She is completely covered in lime green and bright teal fabric and her hair is a shocking yellow color. She is clearly from the Capitol. She clears her throat and the crowd freezes. Everyone around me stops moving and speaking, their eyes locked on the strangely clad announcer. Peeta's hand disappears from mine and I turn around to find him, but he isn't there anymore. I start to panic, and then the woman speaks. When I look up at her, I am frozen in my place, unable to move or speak. _

_"Welcome Welcome…"_

_I know what is coming and the only thought in my mind is that I need to find them._

_"The time has come…"_

_But I can't move. I'm fighting with everything I have. But I am frozen in place, stone solid._

_"to select one young man and woman…"_

_"No," I think, panicking, "NO!" I keep fighting the strangling stillness that my body is forced to be trapped in. "This was supposed to end years ago…"_

_"for the 90__th__ annual Hunger Games."_

_I see a glint. My eyes flick behind the green woman and lock with his. He raises a white eyebrow at me when he sees that I recognize him and a tight, cruel smile makes the corner of his mouth twitch upward. My mind reels, "No…I know I killed you already…didn't I?"_

_"Ladies first."_

_He flashes me an evil look and his gaze frees me from the frozen spell, permitting me to stumble backward a step. But just as soon as my foot connects with the pavement, I am stuck again. I watch in horror as the Capitol woman reaches into the bowl. She pulls out a slip. I wait in agonizing anticipation for her to open the slip and read the name, but to my surprise she doesn't. Instead she goes back to the microphone._

_"And now for the boys."_

_She grabs another slip of paper from the other bowl. Walking back to the microphone she opens both slips. Looking down at the names she grins, her heavily made-up eyes squinting in sickly pleasure, "Oh this _is _ an interesting turn of events. Out tributes are…"_

_The look that President Snow gives me confirms my fear before she says the names…but it still hits me like a ton of bricks…_

_"Primrose and Aiden Mellark"_

_I try desperately to scream, but all I can get out is a strangled sound that doesn't leave my throat. Straining with everything I can, I try to run forward, tugging and fighting against whatever invisible force is keeping me there, but unable to budge even an inch._

_I stop when I see a commotion near the front of the crowd. A pair of peace keepers are pushing Rose and Aiden up to the stage. But they aren't cooperating. Another pair of peace keepers go and grab their arms, shoving them up the stairs. Peeta shoves his way through the frozen crowd and climbs up onto the stage. He knocks out two of the peace keepers and they lie moaning on the floor in a matter of seconds. Peeta goes at the third one but another one grabs him in a headlock from behind. Peeta flips him over his shoulder, slamming him into the stage and knocking the wind out of him. The last peace keeper grabs Rose and points his gun at her. Peeta's eyes flick angrily between her and the peace keeper. But, he puts his hands up in surrender, taking a slow step backward._

_I see Aiden exchange a glance with Rose. She nods subtly at him. He disappears from my sight for a moment, hidden behind heads of the frozen crowd. Then I see him again. He's standing a short distance behind the peace keeper that's got Rose. Three peace keepers surround Peeta and shove him to his knees on the stage._

_Snow is at the microphone, he locks his eyes on me and makes an announcement in front of the crowd. But his words are meant for me. I don't hear everything he says…but I catch enough, "…inciting rebellious behavior…I sentence this man…to be put to death….immediately."_

_"NO! NO!" I scream silently. I want to stop all this, but I can't do anything. I can feel the raw redness of my throat from screaming, raging rivers of tears on my cheeks, but all the while, my body doesn't move._

_Rose is trying to shove the Peacekeeper's grip off her arm punching and clawing at his fingers. She bites at him, and the peace keeper lets out a shout. Toby takes the opportunity in the distraction to come from behind him giving him a solid punch in the kidneys. The peace keeper loses hold of Rose who runs across the stage. The now furious peace keeper turns around and hits Aiden across the head with the butt of his gun, my baby, sending him falling to the floor from the impact. I can't see him anymore; the frozen people of the crowd block him from my view again. But I don't see him stand back up and my heart races in fear. Snow nods at the group of Peace keepers around Peeta and they all take a step back from him, lifting their guns. Rose shoves her way through them and wraps her arms around Peeta's neck, shouting at them not to shoot. Snow gives the order and…_

I'm sitting bolt upright on the bed, my piercing scream lingering in the air. Peeta has his arms wrapped around me, no longer with the delicate touch he had before, but a firm hold that I'm desperately trying to fight off. The dream is still clinging to me and his arms seem suffocatingly like the frozen spell from the dream. "No!" I scream. The sound pulls me out of the nightmare, and I slowly realize that I'm awake. I can scream again. I can move. I stop fighting and cover my face with my hands, finding it damp with tear tracks. An agonizing pain radiates from my ribs, but still I turn myself and wrap my arms around Peeta's neck, sobbing into his shoulder equally from pain and terror.

"Shhh," he says, rubbing my back to comfort me, "It was just a nightmare. It's not real." He gently takes my arms from his shoulders, releasing some of the pressure in my ribs. I tuck my arms in and rest them on his chest, clenching at his shirt. The dream is still clawing at the inside of my eyelids and I need the reassurance that he's okay and that there aren't bullet holes all over him…

As tears continue to roll down my cheeks I choke out a thought that comes to me suddenly, my words mashing together for saying it so fast, "We shouldn't keep them. We should give them away to somebody else. If we keep them bad things could happen to them. Someone would want to hurt them or use them against us. We can't keep them here. We need to…"

Peeta pushes me out in front of him so he can look at me fiercly, "Katniss. Stop it." The fear on my face softens his voice and he pulls me close again, kissing my forehead. "It was just a bad dream. No one's going to hurt them. And even if anyone were to try something, you and I are a team. We keep each other safe. We can keep them safe too."

I cry for a few moments more, until finally I can't cry anymore. My mind clears and separates the dream from reality, my body registering everything again normally. I can feel the raging pain that pulses through my ribs, and Peeta's arms wrapped comfortingly around me. And finally I register the sound of two crying voices. I push myself away from Peeta a bit and turn to look to the crib and see that Aiden is squirming and crying in his crib. Rose is sitting curled up on her little bed, sniffling quietly and hugging tightly to her blanket.

"They're fine. You just woke them up is all," Peeta says to me before I can speak. He climbs out of the bed and goes to get them, carrying each of our children in his arms before coming back to sit on the bed again. He hands me Rose and he scoots to sit right next to me with Aiden in his arms.

I rock Primrose back and forth watching the color of her cheeks go from frustrated red to a light rosy pink. She's still half asleep and rubs her face into my shoulder as she relaxes from the fright of my episode. Glancing over at Aiden, I see he's relaxed too. Peeta puts one arm around me and rocks Aiden with the other arm. "You know," he says quietly to me, "they'll probably fall asleep faster if you sing to them. They like it when you sing." I look up at him and see a smile on his face, "Okay, so _I_ like it when you sing. But they do too."

I can't help but smile back at him, "Fine." I rest my head on his shoulder and look at our amazing little crations. I remember when Prim had a bad dream she'd want me to sing to her…but right now I don't want to sing about the hanging tree or the meadow song. Instead a different tune comes to mind, and I give it voice.

_"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go…"_

I'm usually really self-conscious about singing, and thus, I don't sing very often, especially not in front of people. But seeing their little faces, all I could think about was how much I loved them and how precious they are to me. There is nothing I want more in the world than to keep them safe and sound.

_"Hold on to this lullaby, even when the music's gone. Gone…just close your eyes, the sun is going down, you'll be alright; no one can hurt you now. Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound."_

Quietly I say to Peeta, my eyes looking down admiringly at the sleeping angels in our arms, "I didn't mean it when I said that, I was just…"

"Shhh. I know. I know." He gives my shoulder a light squeeze and kisses my head.

"I don't ever want to give them up. And as long as I'm alive I'll do anything to keep them safe."

"We both will. Together."

I shift Rose to hold her with one arm, and rest my other hand on Peeta's cheek, turning him to look at me. My gaze shifts back and forth from one blue eye to the other and I'm overwhelmed by them. I kiss him softly on the lips and he returns it. Aiden's wiggling calls for Peeta's attention and he pulls away from kissing me to get up from the bed.

"Wait," I say, grabbing onto the fabric of Peeta's shirt to pull him toward me. I lean over, briefly feeling a stinging pain rush through my torso, but when I press my lips gently to Aiden's forehead I'm able to forget about it. Smiling, Peeta rises and goes to lay Aiden in the crib.

I look down at Rose, sleeping soundly in the crook of my arm. My mind flashes to the last moments of the dream. I squeeze my eyes shut to banish the vision as well as to keep from letting any more tears form, shaking away the horrible memory. I open my eyes again and lift her up to give her a kiss on the cheek. I'm not going to let a nightmare take her away from me. I give her one more kiss on the other cheek. Peeta comes and takes her from me, to go lay her down in her little bed.

When he sits down on the bed beside me again I quietly whisper to him, "Thank you."

"Your wel-," I cut him off, pulling him toward me for a kiss.

I can feel his smirk against my lips before he kisses me back. My fingers intertwine with his wavy blonde hair, not that I can see it because my eyes are closed. He kisses me more deeply, a hand rising to caress my cheek. I laugh at myself in my mind. Was there ever really once a time when I didn't want to kiss this man? I grin against his kiss and lean into his embrace. I haven't gotten the chance to kiss him like this in weeks. He's barely touched me ever since the accident for fear of hurting me with the slightest touch. I've missed it. His kiss is like a drug. It sends my mind reeling and makes my heart beat a million miles an hour. He breaks the kiss and tilts his head so our foreheads rest against each other. He chuckles, trying to catch his breath.

Once I catch my own breath I laugh a little too. "And that's enough for tonight," I say smirking. We peek over at the twins glad to see them sleeping soundly in their little blankets.

Peeta lays back on the pillows, his arm outstretched on my side of the bed. Smiling, I lay down beside him, and he wraps his arm around me. I rest my hand on his chest and he laces our fingers together there. For a few moments, I listen to his heart and his breathing, both slowing down to a resting pace. The sounds and the warmth of him beside me are enough to lull me to sleep again. Before I doze off I hear him say he loves me. Drowsily I tell him I love him too. And I fall back to sleep.

My dreams are pleasant now. The shadows of the nightmare from before are now banished by visions of dandelions, sunshine, and the love of the three people closest to me.


End file.
